That’s right, you read that correctly! For the first time, since the Ecology Action Center began collecting waste generation and recycling data, McLean County’s recycling rate is over 50%. That means of all the waste generated within the county, more than half of it was recycled in 2024. This is big milestone for us and also one of the major goals in our solid waste management plan.
During 2024, McLean County had a 5% increase of total waste generated however, less waste was landfilled and almost 15% more waste was recycled than in 2023. The local construction and demolition recycling center, which also handles bulk waste from Bloomington and Normal, had a large uptick in material processing during 2024. More textiles were recycled in 2024 including quilted mattress covers by mattress recycler, Kern Mattress Outlet, who’s working to expand their local recycling efforts through an initiative called Kernovate. Both Bloomington and Normal recycled more brush and leaves last year and the EAC’s Community Composting program collected 57.4 tons of food waste, a 23% increase from 2023.
Some areas of decrease include paper recycling which may partly be due to the overall reduction in paper waste as print media and classroom materials continue to transition to digital platforms. Additionally, improved manufacturing quality at large scale facilities has also led to significantly fewer materials, like lithium-ion batteries and glass, from entering the recycling stream. Following market trends, we also saw a decrease in metal material being recycled in 2024 versus 2023. Sometimes, if facilities have space, they will stockpile material if rates are low and wait for them to increase before processing and selling to buyers.
While we are seeing a slight decline in single stream recycling that’s collected from residents and other local businesses, don’t be discouraged. This can likely be attributed to an overall decrease in the weight of products being produced. The Ecology Action Center has been collecting data and calculating the county’s recycling rate since the 1990’s. The next phase of the solid waste management plan includes an automatic increase of the recycling rate goal to 60% by 2027.
Thank you for another amazing year of volunteer work!
In September the EAC hosted its first annual Volunteer Appreciation Event. Staff was able to celebrate and have community with many of the wonderful folks who give their time to making McLean County a better and greener place to live. For those who were not able to join us, we want to share some amazing statistics:
·In 2024, 635 volunteers assisted with 123 Ecology Action Center activities, putting in 1,222 hours of volunteering.
oForty-eight volunteers put in over 135 hours of work stuffing pamphlets and directing traffic aiding in the collection of 21,000 gallons of Household Hazardous Waste.
oEleven volunteers helped prepare materials for the summer library program, helping us reach all 15 county libraries educating 247 families on aluminum recycling.
oEighty-eight volunteers stenciled 371 drains and handed out 1,757 door hangers over 9 different events.
oOne hundred and sixteen volunteers helped at 12 Sugar Creek Stewards Workdays removing thousands of bush honeysuckle and other invasive plants.
·As of September 1 2025, 323 volunteers have assisted with 62 different volunteer opportunities putting in 1,403 hours of their time.
oSixteen volunteers worked 102 hours over 12 shifts collecting about 1 ton of recyclables at the McLean County Fair.
oThree volunteers assisted with collection of 9 carts of compost at Sweet Corn Circus.
oOne hundred and seventy-five volunteers collected 1.25 tons of trash and various large items at 9 mCLEAN UP Crew workdays.
oTree Corps planted over 5,000 trees in McLean County which in their lifetime will sequester 55 million pounds of carbon dioxide, remove over 250,000 pounds of air pollutants from our atmosphere, and avoid 84 million gallons of runoff.
We cannot thank our wonderful volunteers enough for the work that they do for our community. We especially want to give a shout out to our lovely volunteer award winners. Although everyone who has ever volunteered with the EAC deserves an award, these folks went above and beyond:
If you want to get involved volunteering with the Ecology Action Center, sign up for a volunteer opportunity today at ecologyactioncenter.org/volunteering
Hi! My name is Hadley McKenzie, and I am EAC’s new Program Assistant. I grew up in LeRoy, IL just outside of Bloomington-Normal, and graduated from Illinois Wesleyan University in May of 2023. At IWU, I earned my BA in Environmental Studies with a concentration in Sustainability, Policy, and Justice, and a minor in Sociology. In the summer of 2022, I conducted international climate change research with Dr. Sang virtually out of the Southern Institute of Social Sciences in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. Our focus was on climate change-related physical and mental health impacts felt by locals in developing countries; this included highlighting physical and mental health complications related to environmental changes, social factors that influence the strength environmental challenges have on one’s health, impacts felt by minority and low-invested communities, and how climate migrants are adversely affected. This research, along with other classes, introduced me to the community-based side of environmental topics and challenges.
During the spring of 2023, I was an intern with the YWCA McLean County in Bloomington, where I researched and wrote a Mission Curriculum to teach kindness and acceptance to grades K-6. After graduating, I stayed at the YWCA as a summer camp teacher, before going to Florida to participate in the Disney College Program for the fall semester. I was assigned to be on the custodial team at the EPCOT park, which gave me insight into waste management (and guest behaviors toward waste) at a very large scale.
In August of 2025, I graduated from the University of Denver with my MS in Environmental Policy and Management, concentration in Natural Resource Management, and a Graduate Certificate in Energy & Sustainability. My passions are not only in environmental protection policy and programs, but also in effective science communication that can make them successful at all levels.
While working on my Capstone Project, I was an EAC Intern during the summer of 2025. My intern work included completing research on local chloride levels along Sugar Creek, collecting and analyzing data from wildlife monitoring cameras, and writing for the newsletter! During the fall, I transitioned from intern to part-time staff member, where I now work as a Program Assistant. My main responsibilities thus far have been managing inventory and equipment, helping with solid waste inquiries, and aiding with our Clean Water Program!
The local wildlife are on the hunt for a five star stay! Looks like they found a backyard that has all the amenities they need! Want upgrade your backyard? Visit YardSmart.org for some more fall gardening tips.
Redwood Photo from National Park Service Archives
NAME: Hyperion SPECIES: Coastal Redwood Sequoia sempervirens LOCATION: Redwood National Park, California
The tallest known tree in the world is Hyperion, a coastal redwood hidden somewhere deep in California’s redwood national park. Redwood forests stretch a thin line along the northern California and southern Oregon coast, where the mist from the ocean and mild temperatures create a temperate rainforest zone.1 This fog from the ocean is nutrient rich and serves as the perfect conditions for redwood trees to reach their full heights. Redwoods are known to be giant trees, usually standing about 200 feet tall. Hyperion is an amazing 379 feet tall! That is especially impressive considering the estimation that it may not be physically possible for a tree to exceed 400 ft, due to the incredible amount of suction pressure needed to get water from the roots all the way to the leaves at the top.2 Redwoods are uniquely suited to address this challenge because they are the only known tree species to have water absorbing leaves, allowing them to hydrate through foliar uptake!3 Scientists believe this adaptation came from the abundance of fog in coastal redwoods’ environment.
Hyperion’s exact location is kept secret from the public for its protection, and even pictures of Hyperion are hard to come by. The surrounding old growth forest was actively being clear-cut in the 70’s before it’s National Park status was achieved, potentially weeks before Hyperion would have been cut down and lost forever.4
We got some great suggestions last month about highlighting local amazing trees, and so that content is in the works! Stay tuned!
READER POLL What do you think of this month's Extremely Amazing tree?
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